Milestones & News

STONY BROOK, NY, April 28, 2014 — With its patient survival rate continually among the highest in all of New York State, the Heart Failure Center of Stony Brook University Hospital has received numerous recognitions for quality. Recent achievements include The Joint Commission's Advanced Certification in Heart Failure and the 2014 American Heart Association "Get With The Guidelines®" Gold Award. This marks the fourth consecutive year that Stony Brook has received the AHA Gold Award.

"These indicators of quality let heart failure patients know that when they choose Stony Brook, they will be cared for by experts that use the highest standards — standards that can reduce disability, prevent future hospitalizations, and prolong life," says Hal Andrew Skopicki, MD, director of the Heart Failure Center, and co-director of the Ventricular Assist Device (VAD) Program at Stony Brook University Heart Institute.

By identifying an individual's risk profile and tailoring therapy to first prevent and then minimize the progression of heart disease, Stony Brook's team of physicians, board certified in advanced heart failure and transplant cardiology, in conjunction with nurse practitioners, nutritionists, physical therapists and nurses looks for workable ways to eliminate barriers to better self-care," notes Michelle Weisfelner Bloom, MD, director of the Outpatient Heart Failure Program.

For patients whose heart failure is advanced, Stony Brook's VAD program offers advanced mechanical therapies such as the HeartMate II® left ventricular assist device (LVAD). Many other options, including access to clinical trials, also are available. For more information, call the Heart Failure at Stony Brook Heart Institute at (631) 444-9600 or visit heart.stonybrookmedicine.edu.